


Tell Me Something I Don't Know

by orphan_account



Category: In the Heights - Miranda
Genre: F/M, Usnavi and Nina are BFFS, they gossip to each other all the live long day
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-10
Updated: 2016-04-10
Packaged: 2018-06-01 09:52:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6513412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nina and Usnavi have always had a close friendship, and it only grows over time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tell Me Something I Don't Know

Her letter comes in when she's 17, and she finds it resting on her windowsill, the one that leads out to her fire escape. Her throat tightens when she sees the Stanford logo stamped onto the upper right corner of the envelope.

"It came while you were it school." Camilla says, her voice a little thick as she lingers at the doorway. Kevin sidles up beside his wife, and together they watch with hopeful (if slightly misty) eyes.

Nina takes a shuddering breath and reaches for the letter, slightly shaking fingers gently holding the sides. She notices how ragged her nail beds are, how chewed her fingernails have become, and she promises herself that no matter what this envelope contains, she'll stop by the salon after she finds out, either to treat herself or to cheer herself up- after she stops by the bodega, of course.

She uses her thumbnail to tear through the lip of the envelope, then carefully unwraps the letter inside. It's almost like an out of body experience as she reads through the customary information at the top, names and numbers and addresses, as if she's avoiding reading the paragraphs below. When she finally forces herself to read past the  _Dear Ms Rosario_ at the top, a knot ties itself in her stomach, her eyes swim, and she turns to her parents, trying to make her expression unreadable. She walks towards the door and they surprisingly let her past without a word, suspecting the worst. She hands the letter to her dad, and once she's out of the apartment she bolts for the elevator, and then through the lobby, and then across the street, not even bothering to stop for a taxi that stops just short of hitting her. She crashes through the bodega doors, nearly bowling young Sonny over in the process.

The bodega is as usual as it can be for a Friday afternoon- Usnavi is behind the counter, which Vanessa has gracefully draped herself halfway across to flirt with him, Benny has perched himself on the opposite end of the counter, a newspaper unfolded in his lap. All activity ceases and her friends all turn to look at her, a mixture of confusion and expectancy etched on their young & scrappy faces.

It's then that Nina realizes that in the singular minute it took her to get here, she didn't really develop a plan. She only really came to the bodega for it's owner, but with all these people she's known all her life staring at her, expecting something great, her supposedly brilliant mind has gone inexplicably blank.

"Usnavi," She finally says, gesturing awkwardly. "Can I, um, talk to you? Real quick?"

Usnavi looks between her and Vanessa a few times before he steps out from behind the counter. "Sure, sure. Just a sec, guys." And he leads her outside, a hand on her back.

Once they've rounded the corner and they're out of sight, Nina throws her arms around Usnavi's neck, sobbing loudly into his shoulder. He responds immediately, wrapping his arms around her. "Hey. Hey! What's wrong?"

Nina gulps down a few labored breaths before lifting her head to look at him. "My letter came today." She chokes.

Usnavi's grip on her tightens. "And?"

The words linger on the tip of her tongue, and she has to force them off into the air. "I got in."

The weight of what it all means lingers between them for a few moments, Usnavi's jaw hangs off his skull. "Christ." He finally breaths out. " _Dios Mio_ Nina, yes!" He hugs her close and they squeeze the air out of each other. "I knew you'd make it! I did! Nina! I'm so goddamn proud of you. Yes! My best friend is a college girl!"

Once the moment passes and they manage to untangle themselves from each other, they head back into the bodega. "What's up?" Benny asks.

Usnavi grabs her hand and holds it high above their heads, like she's just won in the right. "Our lady's Cali-bound!"

* * *

 

 _No te vayas_  
_Si me dejas_  
_Si te alejas de mi..._

"Hello?" Nina grabs her ringing phone off of her bedside table.

"Nina!" Usnavi's voice calls. "First week away from home. How's Cali?"

"Hot." Nina fans herself with her housing package- even in her air-conditioned dorm, it's still at least ten degrees hotter than it would be at home.

"Am I calling too late?" Usnavi asks, a hint of worry in his voice. "I mean, it's six here, but I still don't know how far ahead you are-"

"You're fine," Nina assures him, "It's only nine."

"Oh, okay. Good. Sorry I didn't call earlier. Sorry I haven't been calling every day. Things have been weird. Sonny's been sick."

"No worries. How's Vanessa?" She coos, a teasing tone to her voice.

She can hear Usnavi covering half his face with his hand, but smiling nonetheless. "Man," he groans, "she's your friend too. can't you ask her?"

"Yeah, she is my friend, but she's not my  _best_ friend. She is one of, but you,  _mi amore,_ hold the honor of that high title. So I get to tease you." She lilts, sitting back on her bed.

"She's fine." Usnavi admits after a brief pause. "I haven't seen a lot of her. She takes the train into the city most days, says she's looking into moving down there. Good thing too, things with her mom are... Not great."

Nina puckers her mouth. "Yeah, Abuela was saying. Why doesn't she move in with you?" She suggests, then after a moment, "Not like- Not like a housewife situation, or whatever, just to get her out of- you know what I mean."

"Believe me, I've suggested it. She's too proud." Usnavi says sadly. "I just- like, her mom won't work, so she got a job at the salon, but it's not a lot. I'm giving her as much free stuff as I can without breaking the law, but I'm really scared that it's not enough."

"You're a good man, Usnavi." Nina tells him. "You're doing a good thing for her."

"I just wish it was enough." Usnavi sighs. "I just love her so much, I just want to make sure she's safe, I- oh."

"Oh my god, you WHAT?" Nina cries.

"Nothing! Forget I said anything." But Usnavi has already resigned himself to what is sure to be endless teasing.

* * *

 

"There you are," Usnavi greets her cheerily as she enters the bodega, "Benny was around earlier. Heard you were back in town. He was looking for you." He raises an eyebrow.

"Shut up." Nine laughs and swats his shoulder, but then her face falls when she remembers the task at hand.

"Hey, what's up?" Usnavi notices, and lowers his tone.

"I-" Nina chokes on the words. "I don't really know how... So, tuition was really expensive. And you know I was working a lot, and so my grades... Weren't the best. And I kind of lost it and I left- Well, I didn't leave, I kinda got the boot- but I'm freaking out, because I just packed up and left, and I can't go back, and you're the first person I've told, and I don't know what to do." She then realizes that she's crying, and it's a stab in the chest because it reminds her of the day she told him she was accepted.

Usnavi, for the first time in all the years she's known him, is speechless. He practically vaults the counter to hug her, and that only hurts more. Usnavi breaks her heart when he finally finds his voice.

"Hey, it-it's okay, it's alright. We'll figure something out. I'll hide you in the back room if need be, hey? You're gonna be okay."

For a moment, she indulges in a wild fantasy and allows herself to believe it. She imagines what life would be if she  _did_ stay- she could move in with Abuela Claudia, she thinks, maybe work part time here at the bodega. Or something. Whatever happens, she knows that Usnavi, her best friend, her big brother, will never let her fall.

* * *

 

"Jesus, can you believe?" Benny asks her. They stand on the stone bridge overlooking the neighborhood as the sun rises on the still-powerless island. "Three days. Everything's changed."

"Yeah." Nina says animatedly. She feels numb, hollow, like there's nothing underneath her skin. Benny touches her arm, protectively moving closer.

"Nin, it's okay. We're all gonna miss him." He assures. "But he promised to stay in touch."

"I know." Nina nods, refusing eye contact, because she knows if she looks into Benny's kind eyes she'll be a mess again, like she was yesterday. "But he's my  _best friend_ , Benny. there's nothing I don't tell him."

"Nothing?" Benny raises an eyebrow, and Nina allows herself to laugh. "Exactly how much does he know?"

" _Everything._ " Nina responds truthfully, remembering the brief moments as Daniella was hyping up the neighborhood outside the bodega when Nina dished to Usnavi the details of their night together over warm beers, Usnavi laughing, 'aww'ing, and assuring Nina that if Benny ever did anything less than favorable he'd find himself dumped in the Hudson.

"Aw, man!" Benny reeled back, laughing. "Well, if anyone's gonna know, might as well be him."

"Yeah." Nina says again. "Christ. Two of the most important people in my life. Gone."

Benny nods, because there's not a lot to say. They stand in silence for a while, and they probably would stay there for a lot longer if Sonny didn't come running up the steps to them, red-faced and sweaty.

"Sonny, what's up?" Benny asks.

"Usnavi- grate- Pete- Staying-" Sonny pants out.

"Slow down." Nina instructs, guiding him through some deep breaths. Once he's regained full controlled use of his lungs, he grabs Benny by his bicep.

"Long story short, Usnavi's not leaving."

Benny stares for a few moments. "Not a joking matter, Son." He shakes his head.

"I'm not try'na be funny!" Sonny exclaims. "He's really staying! Go down to the bodega and check!"

Nina and Benny look between each other before bolting down the steps to find the grocery store. They arrive to find many of their neighbors crowding Usnavi, hugging him and laughing. But that isn't even the most amazing thing- the most amazing thing is the grate, now brilliantly painted with a portrait of Abuela Claudia, surrounded by Washington Heights landmarks. 'Paciencia y Fe' is spray-painted below her face.

"Oh my god." Benny whispers. Nina whips around and sees Usnavi standing there, as if he had been waiting for them to notice him. She wastes no time in rushing to him, leaping into his arms.

"You're really staying?" She asks hoarsely.

"I'm really staying." He tells her. "Now you're the one abandoning _me_."

"Stop that!" She yells, but doesn't let go. 

"Now you'll always know where to find me." He tells here. "I'm right here, at home."

* * *

 

"Hey there." Nina smiles into her phone, pulling herself out of bed so as to not disturb Benny.

"Hey you." Usnavi greets. "Hows Cali? More importantly, how your  _boyfriend_?" He teases. Revenge, he thinks.

"Oh, you mean the power bottom?" Nina gazes over to where Benny lies on the bed, silently giggling to herself. "He's just fine."

"Don't tell me he makes you do all the work." Usnavi admonishes.

"No, no, trust me, he takes good care of me." Nina shrugs, and she knows this conversation is quickly spiraling into one of their famous sex life dish sessions. "But like, last night, he was talking about having a threesome."

"Whaaaat?" Usnavi drones. "Like, two guys? Two girls? What?"

"Two guys." Nina confirms. "I dunno. I think I'm down, but... I'm not sure."

"Hey, he does anything that makes you uncomfortable, I will crawl to Cali and rip off his-"

"Whoa! No need, Usnavi. You know he'd never do anything like that." Nina stifles a laugh.

"I know. I'm just protective, you know."

"How's Vanessa?" Nina asks.

"She's good. She's beside me right now, actually." Usnavi says, and Nina can hear Vanessa yelling 'hi Nin!'.

"Hows the new apartment. Midtown?" Nina inquires.

"It's real nice. It's super, uh, modern? And it's real close to everything." Usnavi informs her.

"I can't wait to see it." Nina's tone drops- she misses Usnavi, misses Nina, misses Sonny, and she knows Benny does too. "We're looking into coming out to visit soon."

"Oh, really?" Usnavi asks. "Hold up a second." The line is quiet for a few minutes, Nina hears a door close, and then Usnavi returns. "If I fly you guys out, how soon can you come visit?"

"Uh, as soon as possible, probably." Nina's interest is definitely piqued. "Why?"

"I'm gonna propose soon, and I wanna do it in the barrio, with all our old friends. Daniella and Carla are gonna come down from the Bronx, I've already talked to your parents, so all we need now is you two." Usnavi confesses.

Nina nearly drops the phone. "Oh my god!" She cries. "Usnavi, that's... Holy shit. I'm so happy for you. That's amazing."

"Well, it's not a done deal yet. I still have to, y'know, ask." Usnavi laughs. "But I want you to be there when I do this." A slight pause. "And Benny, too, of course."

"Of course." Nina repeats. "I'll look into getting time away from school. You know I'll be there, no matter what."

"I know you will." Usnavi tells her. "Alright, I gotta go. I promised 'Nes we'd go out for breakfast."

"Alright, have fun, lovebirds." She jokes.

"Have fun with the power bottom." Usnavi jibes back. "Love you, Nin."

"Love you too." She says before hanging up. She holds the phone to her chest.

"Babe?" Benny rolls over, his voice grainy with sleep. "What's up?"

"We gotta go back to the barrio," She tells him, "my brother needs us."


End file.
